


Stay With Me

by aj_linguistik



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, Fanfic Request, Heart Attack, I Do, I know nothing about CPR I had to google some stuff, Know treadmills, One Shot, Or heart attacks google is my friend, however
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2020-03-08 00:42:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18884623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aj_linguistik/pseuds/aj_linguistik
Summary: For an anonymous ask on tumblr.Asuna takes a stress test running on a treadmill, but the stress proves to be too much for her heart.





	Stay With Me

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I had a little difficulty with this request because I'm not medical at ALL. But I think I did a decent job considering...

               Ever since the SAO Incident, survivors have been under the watchful eye of doctors and mental health professionals alike. They give it their all to ensure that we’re healing from the physical effects the incident left on our bodies as well as trying to help us through the mental trauma we may have taken away from the event. It could be argued that our bodies healed faster than our minds. As I watched Asuna prep herself for a stress test, I was reminded that she was in more shape than I was, despite her leaving the hospital much later than I did.

               Asuna seemed to keep a cool head about her concerning the SAO Incident. Maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough, but she didn’t seem to outwardly show signs of struggle with the trauma of being trapped in the death game. She’d matured from the young reckless fencer I’d met in a cave on the first floor of Aincrad—Asuna came to terms with her situation and overcame it. In that sense, I envied her and her strength. I still woke up with nightmares about the lives I’d taken and the lives I’d seen disappear from right in front of me.

               She gave me a smile as she allowed the nurse to place electrodes on her torso. If nothing else, she could tell I was lost in thought. I gave her a smile back. There was nothing to worry about. This test was not for mental stress, but rather for physical stress. The doctor would have her run on a treadmill to test the state of her heart after a few months of physical therapy. She’d asked the nurse if I could be in the room with her, and she’d seen no reason why that was an issue.

               “Have you ever run on a treadmill before, Kirito-kun?” she asked.

               Laughing, I nodded.

               “Unfortunately, I had to do this test, too,” I said.

               “Well, I’m sorry I missed seeing that,” she said teasingly. “I can’t see you liking this sort of activity at all.”

               “Wow, harsh!”

               The nurse let out a small chuckle and finished up connecting the electrodes. She helped Asuna step up onto the treadmill and started to give her the rundown of proper treadmill safety. Based on the way Asuna was smiling and nodding, it was obvious she already knew most of what she was being told. But, ever the polite elite she’d been raised to be, she calmly and patiently listened to what the nurse had to say. When she finished, the nurse turned the machine on.

               Asuna had good form as her walking pace turned into a slight jog. For a brief moment, I considered that odd. She was the kind of person who focused on her studies; she didn’t seem like the athletic type. But it eventually struck me that Asuna’s personality and upbringing wouldn’t allow her to fail even in classes where physical ability was a part of the test. Running, swimming, and joining in group sports for class was likely no exception to this behavior.

               After a few minutes of light jogging, the nurse pushed up the speed of the treadmill ever so slightly. She kept her eyes glued to the heart monitor and made notes on her clipboard. Not being a medically inclined person, I wasn’t sure what she was looking for, but based on the regular rhythm of the beeps coming from the machine, it sounded to me like everything was going perfectly fine.

               Frowning, Asuna pressed one hand to the left side of her chest. Her eyebrows knit together in a way that suggested she might have felt some kind of chest pain. I glanced over at the nurse. She wasn’t looking at Asuna. Her eyes were still focused on the monitor. I waved my hand at her. She turned her head to look at me.

               “Is something wrong, Mr. Kirigaya?” she asked.

               “I think something’s bothering Asuna,” I said, pointing at her.

               Her breaths were getting short and ragged. She still had her hand pressed against her chest. The nurse walked over to the treadmill and told Asuna she was turning the machine off. She eased her down to walking pace and then stopped it completely. I offered a hand to Asuna. She grasped it and stepped down off of the treadmill, still clutching her chest.

               “What hurts?” the nurse asked.

               “My chest…kind of feels tight…” she said.

               She was practically gasping for air. I placed one hand on her shoulder and frowned.

               “Try and catch your breath,” I said.

               Asuna shook her head.

               “Something’s wrong,” she gasped. “I feel…dizzy.”

               She wobbled for a moment and then collapsed in my arms. The heart monitor let out an annoying, high-pitched sound. The nurse gasped.

               “She’s gone into cardiac arrest!” she exclaimed. “I’m going to call a doctor!”

               “A-Asuna?” I said.

               But she was already unconscious. She couldn’t respond to me. I pressed my fingers to her neck. Sure enough, her pulse had stopped. I rested her on the ground and apologized to her quietly as I pressed my hands to her chest and started to do chest compressions. We’d learned some basics of CPR in school, but I doubted it was enough to restart a heart. Either way, I had to try.

               “Please,” I said. “Please open your eyes.”

               It felt like an eternity. Emotion welled up in my chest. After all we’d been through, I wasn’t about to let her go because of a little stress test. Over two years of fighting for each other couldn’t end like this. I bent over and put my lips to her mouth, breathing into her. I lifted my face from hers. Nothing. I repeated the process until the door opened and the nurse and a doctor came into the room.

               The doctor told me to move aside and let them handle it, but as soon as he went to pull me off of her, Asuna coughed. We all stared down at her. She drew in a breath, coughed again, and then opened her eyes. I pressed my hand against her cheek and felt the tension in my chest release. She frowned up at me.

               “Kiri…to…kun…don’t…cry,” she murmured.

               “Everything’s gonna be okay, Asuna,” I said. “I promise. The doctor’s here. He’ll take good care of you.”

               We shared a smile. I picked up her hand and gently squeezed it.

               “I knew the strongest fighter in all of Aincrad wouldn’t leave me just yet,” I said.

               Before the doctor took her to check on her, I made sure to give her a kiss.

* * *

 

               My eyes snapped open. I rolled over and put my hand on Asuna’s shoulder. She let out a groan and her eyes fluttered open to look at me. She frowned and pressed a hand to my cheek.

               “What’s wrong?” she mumbled. “You’re crying.”

               “I just…had a dream about…several years ago,” I said, sighing. “About one of the times I almost lost you.”

               She cuddled up to my chest and wrapped her arm around my waist.

               “I’m not going anywhere, Kirito-kun,” she whispered. “I’m right here. By your side. And if something happens to one of us, the other will always be there to save us. Isn’t that right?”

               I nodded and held her close to me.

               “Yeah. Always.”


End file.
